Onkyo Set to Release DP-X1 Hi-Res Audio Player

Onkyo is getting into personal media players this month with the release of its first high-resolution audio device, the DP-X1. According to a report on The Verge, the $899 Android-powered PMP (which HRAC first reported on coming out of CES 2016) sports two ESS Sabre digital-to-analog converters and amplifiers, one of each for each channel of audio. The audio chips and circuitry reside on a separate board from the applications processor, with Onkyo aiming to minimize the intrusion of unwanted electrical noise. They even have independent local power supplies for truly phobic level of interference attenuation.

The DP-X1’s internal design and hardware are said to be specifically geared toward delivering pure, undiluted, powerful sound. The X1 will also be among the first PMPs to support the MQA (Master Quality Authenticated) format.

With two 200GB microSD card slots and 32GB of built-in storage, the Onkyo DP-X1 can store up to 432GB of music or anything else that an Android device can play. The device will access the Google Play Store (albeit on Android 5.1 rather than the latest 6.0), and you can plug into any of the growing cadre of hi-res audio stores out there, such as Tidal and Onkyo’s own OnkyoMusic.

The DP-X1 promises up to 16 hours of continuous playback from its 1,630mAh battery. The display up front is a 4.7-inch, 720p panel, and the whole thing weighs just over 200g.